Reconfigurable dual band antenna for 2.4 and 3.5GHz using single PIN diode

Heterogeneous network tends to use multiple types of wireless access networks. In heterogeneous wireless networks, different wireless access technologies are integrated to complement each other in terms of coverage area, mobility support, bandwidth, and price. In this paper, dual radios, fixed-WiMAX (i.e. 802.16d) at 3.5 GHz and WLAN at 2.4 GHz are used. Dual band rectangular microstrip antenna with reconfigurable capability is proposed, which has the advantage of simple structure, small size and easy fabrication. FR-4 substrate with dielectric constant ε_r = 4.3 and thickness h=1.6mm parameters are employed for the proposed design. This design shows excellent mechanical characteristics for the antenna. This study is concentrates on effect of patch dimensions, width and length of microstrip feed line. Then reconfigurable antenna using customized slots on different locations on the microstrip patch at dual band frequencies are considered. The proposed antenna is switchable between two resonance frequencies by PIN diode. The simulation is implemented by CST microwave studio simulator showed good performance. The return loss was -22 dB at frequency 2.4GHz and -27 dB at 3.5GHz. The bandwidths were 65MHz at 2.4 and 50 MHz at 3.5GHz.